Fortnite

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D paired with the Intel Arc B390 delivers a fascinating, if lopsided, Fortnite experience. Benchmark data reveals a system where an exceptionally strong CPU is held back by an integrated graphics unit, producing playable but not spectacular frame rates. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS across resolutions and settings, examines the roles of both components, and contextualizes the combo’s standing against other tested configurations.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and telling. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 63 FPS at 1920x1080 to 40 FPS at 2560x1440, then to just 21 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 37% decrease from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 48% decrease from 1440p to 4K. The pattern is consistent across all settings presets, pointing clearly to the GPU as the limiting factor.

The data shows a near-linear relationship between pixel count and performance, which is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario. For instance, at Low settings, the frame rate drops from 115 FPS at 1080p to 73 FPS at 1440p (a 37% reduction), and then to 39 FPS at 4K (a 47% reduction). The Intel Arc B390, with its integrated graphics architecture, simply cannot maintain throughput as the render load increases exponentially with resolution.

This scaling behavior implies that the Ryzen 7 9800X3D’s substantial processing power is largely idle during these tests. The CPU is capable of far higher frame rates, but it is forced to wait for the GPU to finish each frame. For users targeting 4K, the experience will be severely compromised, with even Low settings failing to reach 40 FPS. The 1080p resolution is the only viable option for a smooth experience, and even there, the Ultra preset struggles.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide a clear hierarchy of performance. At 1080p, the Low preset delivers 115 FPS, which is the only configuration in the entire dataset to exceed the 100 FPS mark. Medium settings drop to 81 FPS, High to 63 FPS, and Ultra falls to 41 FPS. This suggests that for competitive play, where high frame rates are paramount, the Low preset is the only reasonable choice.

For a balance between visual fidelity and playability, Medium at 1080p offers a 29% improvement over High (81 vs 63 FPS) while still being a playable experience. The jump from Medium to High costs 18 FPS, which is a significant sacrifice for marginal visual gains on an integrated GPU. Ultra settings are not recommended at any resolution, as they produce the lowest average FPS in every category, dipping to 14 FPS at 4K.

At 1440p, the situation becomes more dire. Low settings produce 73 FPS, which is acceptable, but Medium drops to 51 FPS and High to 40 FPS. The data indicates that 1440p is a stretch for this combo, and users should stick to Low or Medium presets if they insist on this resolution. At 4K, no setting is truly playable, with the highest average being 39 FPS on Low, which is below the threshold for smooth gameplay in a fast-paced battle royale.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is a 3 nm integrated graphics processor with a boost clock of 2500 MHz. Its performance is quantified by a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482, which places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. This is a very low standing, and the nearest rivals listed include the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710, which has a score of 1443 (a 2.7% delta), and the GT 520MX with a score of 1463 (a 1.3% delta). This data categorizes the Arc B390 as a basic, entry-level graphics solution.

The GPU has 1536 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 24 ROPs, with a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s. Its FP32 performance is 7.680 TFLOPS. However, the most critical limitation is its memory configuration: the memory size, type, and bus width are all “System Shared,” with bandwidth listed as “System Dependent.” This means the GPU relies on the system’s main memory (DDR5) instead of dedicated VRAM, which severely impacts bandwidth-sensitive tasks. The base clock is just 300 MHz, though it boosts to 2500 MHz under load.

In Fortnite, these specifications translate to the low frame rates observed. The shared memory architecture is a likely bottleneck, as the GPU must compete with the CPU for memory access. The 12 RT cores are present, but their impact is minimal given the overall low compute throughput. The data strongly suggests that the GPU is the definitive performance ceiling for this combo.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU/GPU combo in Fortnite?

A: The data shows 1920x1080 is the only resolution where average FPS exceeds 60 on any preset. At 2560x1440, the maximum average FPS is 73 on Low, and at 3840x2160, it drops to 39 on Low.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to Low at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 115 FPS, while the Ultra preset achieves 41 FPS. This represents a 64% reduction in average frame rate when moving from Low to Ultra.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the primary bottleneck in this system?

A: The benchmark results indicate the GPU is the limiting factor. The Intel Arc B390 scores in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, while the Ryzen 7 9800X3D scores in the 87th percentile of all CPUs. The FPS scaling with resolution also points to a GPU bottleneck.

Q: What is the average FPS at 1440p Medium settings?

A: The measured data shows an average of 51 FPS at 2560x1440 with Medium settings, with a minimum of 44 FPS and a maximum of 59 FPS.

Q: Does the Arc B390 have dedicated VRAM?

A: No. The FACT PACK lists the memory size, type, and bus width as “System Shared,” meaning it uses the system’s main memory instead of dedicated graphics memory.

Q: How does the Arc B390 compare to the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710?

A: In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the Arc B390 scores 1482, which is 2.7% higher than the GT 710’s score of 1443.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is a desktop processor from the 9000 series, built on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge) using a 4 nm process. It has 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.20 GHz. Its cache configuration includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and a substantial 96 MB of shared L3 cache. This large L3 cache is a hallmark of the X3D series and is designed to reduce memory latency, which is beneficial for gaming.

The CPU’s benchmark scores are impressive. It achieves a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 23230 and a single-core score of 2080. Its Geekbench scores are 18696 for multicore and 2964 for single-core. The 3DMark tests show a score of 10081 for 16 threads and 1212 for a single thread. These results place the CPU in the 87th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 39768.

The nearest rivals in the data are the AMD Ryzen 7 7700, which has an average score of 40081 (a -0.8% delta), and the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365, with a score of 40048 (a -0.7% delta). This shows the 9800X3D is competitive with, but not dramatically ahead of, these other processors in synthetic benchmarks. However, in the context of Fortnite, the CPU’s power is largely untapped. The measured FPS data shows that even at 1080p Low, the frame rate is 115 FPS, which is far below what this CPU could potentially drive. The 89.6 GB/s memory bandwidth and dual-channel DDR5 support are also not being fully utilized due to the GPU’s limitations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured data provides a complete picture of performance across all settings and resolutions. At 1920x1080, the average FPS is 115 on Low, 81 on Medium, 63 on High, and 41 on Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 69 FPS and a maximum of 93 FPS, indicating some variance but a generally stable experience. At 2560x1440, the averages drop to 73 on Low, 51 on Medium, 40 on High, and 26 on Ultra. The Medium preset at this resolution has a minimum of 44 and a maximum of 59. At 3840x2160, the averages are 39 on Low, 27 on Medium, 21 on High, and 14 on Ultra. The Medium preset at 4K has a minimum of 23 and a maximum of 31.

Looking at the scaling from Medium to Low, there is a consistent boost. At 1080p, the gain is 34 FPS (from 81 to 115). At 1440p, the gain is 22 FPS (from 51 to 73). At 4K, the gain is 12 FPS (from 27 to 39). The relative improvement is larger at lower resolutions, which is typical for a GPU-bound scenario. The transition from High to Ultra is also consistent, with a drop of 22 FPS at 1080p, 14 FPS at 1440p, and 7 FPS at 4K. The data shows that no settings preset at any resolution can achieve a consistent 60 FPS minimum, making high-refresh-rate play impossible.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested hardware combinations for Fortnite, this specific pairing of the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D and the Intel Arc B390 ranks 2417 out of 2740 combos. This places it in the bottom 12% of all tested configurations. The rank is a direct consequence of the GPU’s poor relative performance compared to the CPU’s high potential. The combo’s percentile ranking is heavily skewed by the Arc B390’s 9th percentile GPU score, which drags the overall gaming performance down.

The data implies that while the CPU is a top-tier component for gaming, this combo is severely underwhelming. The rank of 2417 suggests that most other tested combinations, even those with much weaker CPUs, likely achieve higher frame rates in Fortnite because they are paired with more capable GPUs. This highlights a fundamental mismatch: the 9800X3D is a high-end desktop CPU designed to eliminate CPU bottlenecks, but the Arc B390 is an entry-level integrated GPU that creates a massive GPU bottleneck. The result is a system that performs like a low-end machine in Fortnite, despite having one of the best gaming CPUs available. The measured FPS data confirms this, as the scores are comparable to what one would expect from a much older or lower-tier processor.